A printing head includes an overlapping portion in which a first nozzle row in which a plurality of first nozzles and a second nozzle row in which a plurality of second nozzles. The printing head includes n nozzle pairs of the first nozzles and the second nozzles. A control unit causes the printing head to print a TP for determining a use range of the first nozzles and a use range of the second nozzles in the overlapping portion, by m specified nozzle pairs (where 0≤m<n) of the first nozzles and the second nozzles used for ejection of the first liquid of the nozzle pairs. The control unit determines the use ranges, based on density of a specified region from a first printing position of the first nozzle to a second printing position of the second nozzle on the TP.
Legal claims defining the scope of protection, as filed with the USPTO.
1. A printing apparatus, comprising: a printing head including: a first nozzle row in which a plurality of first nozzles configured to eject a first liquid onto a medium are arrayed in a predetermined nozzle array direction and a second nozzle row in which a plurality of second nozzles configured to eject the first liquid onto the medium are arrayed in the nozzle array direction; and a control unit configured to control ejection of a liquid including the first liquid from the printing head, wherein the printing head includes an overlapping portion in which a part of the first nozzle row and a part of the second nozzle row overlap with each other, as seen in a first direction intersecting with the nozzle array direction, the overlapping portion includes n nozzle pairs arrayed in the nozzle array direction, where n is an integer equal to or greater than 2, and each of the n nozzle pairs is a pair of the first nozzle having a position within the overlapping portion of the first nozzle row and the second nozzle having a position within the overlapping portion of the second nozzle row corresponding to the position of the first nozzle, when the control unit controls the printing head to print, on the medium, a test pattern for determining a use range of the first nozzles and a use range of the second nozzles in the overlapping portion, the control unit causes the test pattern to be printed by, of the nozzle pairs, m specified nozzle pairs of the first nozzles and the second nozzles used for ejection of the first liquid, where m is an integer equal to or greater than 0 and less than n, the control unit determines the use ranges, based on density of a specified region from a first printing position to a second printing position, the first printing position is, of printing positions by the first nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the second nozzles, and the second printing position is, of printing positions by the second nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the first nozzles.
2. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the density of the specified region is lower than density of a vicinity region of the specified region in the test pattern, the control unit increases the use range of the first nozzles to expand the printing region by the first nozzles in the medium to the side of the printing region by the second nozzles with respect to the first printing position.
3. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the density of the specified region is higher than density of a vicinity region of the specified region in the test pattern, the control unit decreases the use range of the first nozzles to reduce the printing region by the first nozzles in the medium away from the side of the printing region by the second nozzles with respect to the first printing position.
4. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the control unit controls the printing head to print a plurality of the test patterns with m's during printing being different from each other.
5. The printing apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the plurality of test patterns includes the test pattern where m during printing is an integer equal to or greater than 1 and the test pattern where m during printing is 0.
6. The printing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first direction is a transport direction in which the medium is transported and the first direction and the nozzle array direction are orthogonal to each other.
7. A printing method for controlling ejection of a liquid including a first liquid from a printing head, the printing head including a first nozzle row in which a plurality of first nozzles configured to eject the first liquid onto a medium are arrayed in a predetermined nozzle array direction and a second nozzle row in which a plurality of second nozzles configured to eject the first liquid onto the medium are arrayed in the nozzle array direction, wherein the printing head includes an overlapping portion in which a part of the first nozzle row and a part of the second nozzle row overlap with each other, as seen in a first direction intersecting with the nozzle array direction, the overlapping portion includes n nozzle pairs arrayed in the nozzle array direction, where n is an integer equal to or greater than 2, and each of the n nozzle pairs is a pair of the first nozzle having a position within the overlapping portion of the first nozzle row and the second nozzle having a position within the overlapping portion of the second nozzle row corresponding to the position of the first nozzle, when the printing head is controlled to print, on the medium, a test pattern for determining a use range of the first nozzles and a use range of the second nozzles in the overlapping portion, the test pattern is printed by, of the nozzle pairs, m specified nozzle pairs of the first nozzles and the second nozzles used for ejection of the first liquid, where m is an integer equal to or greater than 0 and less than n, the use ranges are determined based on density of a specified region from a first printing position to a second printing position, the first printing position is, of printing positions by the first nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the second nozzles, and the second printing position is, of printing positions by the second nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the first nozzles.
8. A printing apparatus comprising: a printing head including nozzle rows in which a plurality of nozzles configured to eject a first liquid onto a medium are arrayed in a predetermined nozzle array direction; a carriage configured to cause the printing head to scan the medium along a main scanning direction intersecting with the nozzle array direction; a transport unit configured to transport the medium in a transport direction intersecting with the main scanning direction; and a control unit configured to control ejection of a liquid including the first liquid from the printing head, wherein the transport unit transports the medium between one scan and a scan subsequent thereto such that a region of the medium printable by using an upstream portion including first nozzles during the one scan is printable by using a downstream portion including second nozzles during the scan subsequent to the one scan, the first nozzles being a plurality of nozzles upstream in the transport direction of the nozzle rows, the second nozzles being a plurality of nozzles downstream in the transport direction of the nozzle rows, the upstream portion and the downstream portion include n nozzle pairs, where n is an integer equal to or greater than 2, and each of the n nozzle pairs is a pair of the first nozzle having a position within the upstream portion and the second nozzle having a position within the downstream portion corresponding to the position of the first nozzle, when the control unit controls the printing head to print, on the medium, a test pattern for determining a use range of the first nozzles in the upstream portion and a use range of the second nozzles in the downstream portion, the control unit causes the test pattern to be printed by, of the nozzle pairs, m specified nozzle pairs of the first nozzles and the second nozzles used for ejection of the first liquid, where m is an integer equal to or greater than 0 and less than n, the control unit determines the use ranges, based on density of a specified region from a first printing position to a second printing position, the first printing position is, of printing positions by the first nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the second nozzles, and the second printing position is, of printing positions by the second nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the first nozzles.
9. A printing method for controlling ejection of a liquid including a first liquid from a printing head, the printing head including nozzle rows in which a plurality of nozzles configured to eject the first liquid onto a medium are arrayed in a predetermined nozzle array direction, the printing method comprising: a scanning step of causing the printing head to scan the medium along a main scanning direction intersecting with the nozzle array direction; and a transport step of transporting the medium in a transport direction intersecting with the main scanning direction, wherein in the transport step, the medium is transported between one scan and a scan subsequent thereto such that a region of the medium printable by using an upstream portion including first nozzles during the one scan is printable by using a downstream portion including second nozzles during the scan subsequent to the one scan, the first nozzles being a plurality of nozzles upstream in the transport direction of the nozzle rows, the second nozzles being a plurality of nozzles downstream in the transport direction of the nozzle rows, the upstream portion and the downstream portion include n nozzle pairs, where n is an integer equal to or greater than 2, and each of the n nozzle pairs is a pair of the first nozzle having a position within the upstream portion and the second nozzle having a position within the downstream portion corresponding to the position of the first nozzle, when the printing head is controlled to print, on the medium, a test pattern for determining a use range of the first nozzles in the upstream portion and a use range of the second nozzles in the downstream portion, the test pattern is printed by, of the nozzle pairs, m specified nozzle pairs of the first nozzles and the second nozzles used for ejection of the first liquid, where m is an integer equal to or greater than 0 and less than n, the use ranges are determined based on density of a specified region from a first printing position to a second the first printing position is, of printing positions by the first nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the second nozzles, and the second printing position is, of printing positions by the second nozzles in the test pattern printed on the medium, a printing position closest to a printing region by the first nozzles.
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September 5, 2023
June 24, 2025
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